Shloka 97

Adhyaya 89: शौचाचारलक्षणम् — सदाचार, भैक्ष्यचर्या, प्रायश्चित्त, द्रव्यशुद्धि, आशौच-निर्णय

Devanagari script

रसोल्लासा कृते वृत्तिस् त्रेतायां गृहवृक्षजा सैवार्तवकृताद् दोषाद् रागद्वेषादिभिर् नृणाम्

Transliteration

rasollāsā kṛte vṛttis tretāyāṃ gṛhavṛkṣajā saivārtavakṛtād doṣād rāgadveṣādibhir nṛṇām

Translation

In the Kṛta Yuga, livelihood was sustained by the spontaneous joy of essence (rasa). In the Tretā Yuga, it arose from houses and trees—settlement and cultivation. From that very condition, a seasonal or temporal defect (doṣa) emerged among men, giving rise to attachment and aversion (rāga-dveṣa) and the like.

Word by Word

• rasa-ullāsā: delight in essence/spontaneous abundance

• kṛte: in the Kṛta Yuga

• vṛttiḥ: livelihood/means of subsistence

• tretāyām: in the Tretā Yuga

• gṛha-vṛkṣajā: born of houses and trees (settled life, cultivation)

• sā eva: that very (condition)

• ārtava-kṛtāt: produced by seasonality/time/periodic change

• doṣāt: from the defect/taint

• rāga: attachment/passion

• dveṣa: aversion/hatred

• ādibhiḥ: and other (faults)

• nṛṇām: of human beings

Speaker

Suta Goswami

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It explains how, as Yugas decline, doṣas like rāga and dveṣa intensify—these are forms of pāśa (bondage) that Linga-pūjā and Shaiva sādhana aim to purify, restoring the paśu toward alignment with Pati (Śiva).

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

By implication, Śiva-tattva stands beyond the ārtava-kṛta doṣa (time-born defects). The verse contrasts changing, time-conditioned human states with the timeless purity sought through Śiva as Pati.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The takeaway is vairāgya toward rāga-dveṣa and purification of doṣas—core to Pāśupata-oriented discipline—supported by steady Linga-upāsanā as a means to loosen pāśa.